


Inferno

by crestedhearts (orphan_account)



Series: Red Strings (Sephiroth) [5]
Category: Final Fantasy VII Remake (Video Game 2020)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/M, Soulmate-Identifying Marks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-28
Updated: 2020-05-28
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:22:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,842
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24419608
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/crestedhearts
Summary: You visit Seventh Heaven, catch up with Jessie, Biggs, and Wedge, and meet Barrett and Marlene.You learn a little bit more about Sephiroth from the man himself, but not in a way you can understand.
Relationships: Sephiroth (Compilation of FFVII)/Reader
Series: Red Strings (Sephiroth) [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1757899
Comments: 3
Kudos: 75





	Inferno

WHEN YOU COULD SPARE the time, you visited Seventh Heaven for once, and not the other way around. While you were very aware of avalanche and who that entailed, it didn't stop you from frequenting the bar from time to time, and it most certainly didn't stop you from delivering tea to Wedge whenever you could just to visit his cats.

You were surprised, upon entering, to find the place crowded and not at all deserted like you had expected. Tifa was pouring up drinks by the dozen and had no end in sight as people kept coming up for more; you even saw Cloud in the back with her, almost frenzied as he tried to keep the orders correct and going to the right people.

"[Name]!" Jessie's voice was like the crack of a whip over the throng of noise. You turned to face her table, where she sat with Biggs, Wedge, a man who appeared more muscle than bone, and a little girl in a cute pink dress who was talking animatedly to said man. "Over here!"

It was better than braving the crowd around the bar, you decided, after taking a glance at the riot of alcohol being tossed around.

You approached cautiously, wary of drunkards who stumbled and laughed near you, and Jessie finally got impatient enough to jump up and yank you to the table, plopping you down in a seat across from the little girl in pink.

"[Name]!" Wedge cheered, giving you a tiny wave with a surprised look when you looked him dead in the eye. "It's nice to see you! Want some chips?"

"Oh, no thank you." You held your hands up and waved his offer off. Chips didn't sound like a very good appetizer to you, and you had only come for a Cosmo Canyon to unwind a bit. You would probably be getting neither. "I appreciate the offer, Wedge."

Biggs, a grin on his face, reached around Jessie and patted your shoulder. "Barrett, Marlene, this is [Name]. She's the local tea supplier up near the station."

You smiled politely at them, only jostling when Jessie managed to shove a glass of beer in your hand. You never did favor beer, or any alcohol in particular, though Tifa had somewhat succeeded in getting you to like the Cosmo Canyon as long as it had a wedge of lime in it.

"It's nice to meet you both," you said, unflinching underneath Barrett's hard stare. You had a feeling that he did that to all the new people he met. "I'm [Name], like he said, but I only run the tea shop. I'm not much of a supplier."

Barrett grunted at you, keen on going back to speaking to Marlene, but the little girl's eyes were fixed on you, her mouth open wide. She was absolutely adorable and you were having a hard time not snatching her up and cooing over her like a grandmother.

"Hello," you greeted her again, waving your hand at her with a smile. "You're Marlene, aren't you?"

As you interacted with the girl, you found it difficult not to ignore the holes that Barrett was burning in your skull. The little girl was obviously someone important to him, but no one seemed to want to tell you just how.

"Hi," she responded shyly. You held out your hand to shake, just to appease Barrett, and she shook it slowly. "I'm Marlene."

"That's a pretty name," you said, and it was--you had never heard much like it. "I love your dress."

"Thank you! Daddy bought it for me. I really like your feathers."

You had almost forgotten Sephiroth's feathers at your hip--touching them mindlessly, you smiled at her, and plucked one of the smaller ones from your bundle. It was one of the prettier ones and shone like oil slick, and under Barrett's approving stare and nod, you handed it to Marlene.

"Here you go. You can have one, since you like it," you said. She took it from you gently, watching the different colors bounce off under the lights. "Take good care of it, okay? That feather is rare."

"I will!" Marlene promised, clutching it to her chest--very gently, you noticed. Then, she held it up in front of her father's face, chortling,"Look! Look! Miss [Name] gave me a feather!"

"I see that," he began,"but what do you say?"

"Huh?"

You watched, amused, eyes crinkled, at the interaction. Parent dynamics always fascinated you to no end, especially since you had a hard time remembering how your parents were with you as a child. Time seemed to take those away from you the older you got; you were only twenty-three, but your memory was as hazy as an old bat's.

"You say thank you," Barrett was chiding her.

"Oh!" She said, as if struck. She turned to you, her eyes bright. "Thank you!"

"You're welcome, Marlene," you laughed, patiently, and took a sip of the beer Jessie had given you with a grimace. "Jessie, I don't even like beer."

"You're not getting a Cosmo Canyon anytime soon, so drink it up," she said, nudging your shoulder playfully. "And then we can help Tifa clean up after."

"Fine. But I better get one before the night's over."

As the hours went by and the crowd slowly thinned out, leaving crumbs of chips and open beer bottles scattered across the various tables left open, you were entertained by Marlene, who was putting the feather in different parts of her hair and grinning at you, and Jessie, who went along with you and praised Marlene's fashion choices. Barrett seemed to have no issue with you the longer you played with Marlene, choosing to speak with Biggs and Wedge about something far more serious than a feather's fashion season.

Soon, it was Marlene's bed time and you were saying goodbye, drowsy and only a little buzzed. Barrett had offered to take you home after he tucked Marlene away, probably to thank you for occupying his daughter while he spoke about serious things, but you waved him off.

"It's okay," you said gently, fighting through the buzz in your head. "It's only a little ways away. Bring Marlene to visit one day; tea's on the house."

"I'm sure she'd have fun," he laughed when the girl in question nodded her head eagerly. "Come on, little lady, let's get you into bed!"

With a farewell hug to Jessie, Biggs, and Wedge, and a wave to Tifa and Cloud, who still seemed to be busy, you stepped outside and inhaled the smell of Shinra chemicals and metal. It was a far better cry than the musty heat that had become Seventh Heaven.

As you walked down the street to your tea shop, avoiding cats that wove through your legs, you became aware that you were being followed. The vibrating strings on your fingers told you who it was, though, so you continued walking, only stopping well out of view of Seventh Heaven and other people.

You paused just under one of the working street lights, the others under disrepair or age, turning to face Sephiroth. He had kept his distance so far, skirting the edge of pathways and staying in the dark, but approached when you stopped to look at him.

"Stalking isn't nice," you said by way of greeting. His eyes squinted in slight amusement, but not much. "Walk with me."

"I intended to. Just not so close up."

With a roll of your eyes you began walking, linking your arm with his to keep up with his longer strides. To the unwise observer, you would appear like a couple walking down the street, oblivious to onlookers, when you were anything but.

It didn't trouble you too much that you would never have a normal relationship with him. Did it bother you that any attempt at happiness would have to be with someone else? Of course; it hurt when someone who was supposed to be your soul mate couldn't be that for you. Was unable to be that for you.

You had decided, during one of those long showers where you wasted more water than you should have, that you would be happy with whatever moments you got with him. You would cherish them, no matter how distant he was from you, because he had lingered and watched over you; he could have left that first night and never come back.

Instead, he had lent you his sight, given you little tokens, and even now, made sure you were safe as you walked down the road to your shop.

It wasn't love. It was… appreciation. It was nearly a platonic acquaintanceship. You could have tacked many labels onto what you were, but one stood out the most: reluctant friends.

"What do you do when you aren't with me?" You asked suddenly. You could feel his eyes darting to look at your face at the question, an eyebrow raised. You felt your face go hot at having to repeat yourself, flustered. "What I meant was, how do you spend your time? You never sleep, really, and I only see you at night, so…"

"I take care of my important matters." It was so infuriatingly cryptic when you only wanted honesty. Which, he was, to a degree, but he wasn't elaborating. "Don't look so irritated. If it weren't dangerous for you to know, I would have told you."

Dangerous. That was a word you were slowly coming to terms with when it came to him. You knew dangerous; Cloud was dangerous in a different way from Tifa, just like Tifa was dangerous in a different way from Cloud. Sephiroth was his own brand of danger, but in a more powerful way than your stressed out brain could understand.

"Everything seems dangerous for me to know," you sighed. Then you narrowed your eyes, thankful you could see the slight twinge of a grin on his face. "Fine then. What's your favorite color?"

"Starting with the basics, are we?"

"I quite literally know nothing about you, except for your name and former job. This seems like a better compromise."

"... Fair enough." You swore he was laughing at you in his head. "Green."

"Why green?"

"The lifestream. Your turn."

You almost nearly stopped in your tracks at that admission, nearly pulling him with you, but you fixed yourself and continued walking, tucking that tidbit of information away for later.

"Blue. Favorite book?"

"Dante's Inferno."

You had no idea how much that answer would hold significance when it came to him. Later, you would understand that every word that came out of his mouth had a meaning; not a breath was wasted.

Later, you would realize that he was descending into his own hell, and was, in his own way, telling you about it.

Later, you would look back and lament on all the reasons why you should have caught it, but truly?

Truly, you knew nothing about him in the first place until it was too late.


End file.
